Call of Duty 2

Call of Duty 2

Call of Duty 2 is a historic first-person shooter video game and the second installment to the critically acclaimed game Call of Duty. It was developed by Infinity Ward and published by Activision. It was released on October 25, 2005 for Microsoft Windows and on November 15, 2005 for the Xbox 360 in Europe and North America. Other versions were made for mobile phones as well as Pocket PCs and Smartphones.

The game is set during World War II and is experienced through the perspectives of four soldiers, one in the Red Army, one in the United States Army and two in the British Army.

The game was met with a positive public reception, receiving mostly positive reviews from critics. The Xbox 360 version sold over 250,000 copies in its first week, and had sold 1.4 million copies by October 2006.

Gameplay

The player takes on the role of several Allied protagonists in specific missions during World War II. The player is limited to two different weapons which can be swapped with those left on the battlefield, and also carries both fragmentation and smoke grenades. Unlike the previous games in the series, the player may now only hold two firearms, including a sidearm. Therefore, a player may not carry two larger weapons and a sidearm. The player can use the battlefields tactically by taking a kneeling or prone stance in addition to standing, and using cover for both protection and stealth. The player can ‘aim down sights’ and use a gun’s ironsights to steady his fire and aim more accurately. A compass on the heads-up display (HUD) shows both friends and foes, and objective markers to indicate locations the player must reach, areas to defend, or enemy cannons or tanks that the player must plant explosives on to disable. The player may also use stationary machine guns and flak cannons to take out enemy forces, in addition to specific missions where the player takes control of a tank to disable the enemies’ tank force.

The player has a set of binoculars. While it is generally ignored during infantry-limited gameplay, it is vital to the long-range use of the Flak 88s, Crusader MK 2 tanks and one of the missions in which the player must direct artillery fire to defend a town. It is also important for scouting, though most of the game takes place in personal, close combat situations reducing the importance of this tactic.

Should the player take damage, the screen will turn red and the sound of the character’s heartbeat will become loud; the player must find a way to stay out of fire to recover before entering battle again or else will die and have to restart at the last checkpoint. Some attacks, like grenade explosions or tank blasts, will kill the player instantly if the player is too close to the center of the explosion.

In April 2006, Infinity Ward released the Call of Duty 2 Radiant, which allows a player to create their own multiplayer or single player maps. Along with Radiant, the mapmaker includes Maya plug-in support, an effects editor, and an asset manager which allows custom models to be made and imported into the game, as well as custom effects.

North African campaign

The player takes control as a British soldier, Sergeant John Davis of the 7th Armoured Division. The first level has the player in a sneak attack on German troops, ending with the destruction of a valuable German supply station. The next map on the same night has the player defending a crucial town from overwhelming numbers of Germans, finally achieving victory by destroying much of the German tank force using artillery. This is followed by the Second Battle of El Alamein, during which the player has to fight through several trenches, machine gun nests, flak 88s and finally taking the German’s field HQ. The assault on El Daba to intercept the remaining Germans in Egypt and destroy several flak 88s soon follows, ending the first British campaign. An addendum to the second set of missions has the player taking on the role of a British Tank commander, David Welsh. The first mission of the third campaign in Toujane, Tunisia, has the player immediately under fire, holding a household with a single machine gun and then wreaking havoc with an armored car, forced out by mines.They soon break out in a narrow escape and rendezvous with the second squad.

Battle of Normandy campaign

As Corporal Bill Taylor and Brian Person of the 2nd Ranger Battalion, the player starts off by playing a part in D-Day, at the assault of Pointe du Hoc, to destroy a German artillery battery, and hold it against a massive German counteroffensive in the following mission. Soon after, the player captures a nearby town and serves as a sniper against mortar crews until reinforcements arrive. The second US campaign is focused on Hill 400, involving the capture of Bergstein, a disastrous charge at Hill 400’s bunkers and the defense against the German counterattack, with the player again performing sniper work against German mortar teams, destroying enemy armor, and generally holding the hill against the counteroffensive, all the while burdened by artillery and overwhelming numbers of German soldiers. The final British mission takes place during the Battle of Normandy for control of Caen.

Crossing the Rhine campaign

The final mission is set amongst the Americans in the Rhine River crossing into Germany. It begins as one of the few missions with the player immediately under fire, providing cover fire against the Germans until reaching the river banks and then fighting throughout most of the town. The final fight has the player defeat two German Tiger I’s.

Ending campaign

The end credits depict the dramatic rescue of Captain Price from the Germans by a group of American soldiers. After the credits end, the words “No cows were harmed in the making of this game” appear, as in the original Call of Duty. This is in reference to the dead cattle visible in the Normandy missions.

Multiplayer

Each PC multiplayer server can hold a maximum of 64 players, while the limit is eight players on the Xbox 360. In the Xbox 360 players can play live and get new map packs. There are a total of 13 official maps, and three of these are remakes from the original Call of Duty. There are also three extra map packs named Bonus Pack, Skirmish Pack, and Invasion Pack, adding a total of eight maps. Additionally PC players have introduced custom mods such as tactical realism enhancements which bring new life to the online aspect of the game.

The maps vary from Normandy, Africa, and Russia during the winter. Each team can choose a variety of weapons, depending on the map and which teams are playing. Depending on the map, players can choose between American soldiers, Soviet soldiers, and British soldiers for the Allied forces, while the Axis forces must play as German soldiers.

Call of Duty 2 features several game types: Deathmatch, Team Deathmatch, Search & Destroy, Capture the Flag and Headquarters. Many of these game types are retained from the original Call of Duty and its expansion, United Offensive.